Guinea-Bissau: Electoral commission deems December 6th vote, promised after coup, impossible

The National Electoral Commission (CNE) of Guinea-Bissau stated on Thursday, October 8, 2026, that the country was not in a position to organize the presidential and legislative elections scheduled for December 6, the vote intended to close the military chapter opened in November 2025. "The conditions will not be met to organize elections" by that date, declared the vice-president of the CNE, Felisberta Moura Vaz, to the press, according to AFP and the website afrique.le360.ma.

The official specified that the institution had submitted its opinion to the transitional president, General Horta N'Tam, who had set the date himself. When asked about a postponement, she refrained from announcing one: "I will not say that the elections will be postponed," she replied, deferring the decision to the head of the transition. Received the same day by General N'Tam, Prime Minister Ilidio Vieira Té maintained that no party was ready to run, as most political leaderships had reached their term limits and needed to be renewed.

Eleven months of military rule

The army seized power on November 26, 2025, the day before the expected announcement of the provisional results of the November 23 presidential and legislative elections. It ousted outgoing President Umaro Sissoco Embaló and suspended the electoral process. Many observers suspect the former head of state of having orchestrated this power grab himself to interrupt a vote he appeared to be losing, reports AFP.

Exiled in Morocco, Umaro Sissoco Embaló assured the French agency that he would return and run. The junta, which has gradually distanced itself from him, cited security reasons in early October 2026 to prevent a return that had been announced for October 4. Several members of the presidential guard, considered loyal to the former president, were disarmed and placed under surveillance at army headquarters; on October 7, General N'Tam called on those still holding weapons to surrender them.

Dakar and ECOWAS in mediation

Senegal, acting as mediator on behalf of ECOWAS, is requesting that any change to the calendar be based on an inclusive and transparent process, accompanied by clear guarantees of a return to civilian rule, and is calling for the lifting of restrictions on political and civic activities, indicates Africanews.

In August 2026, a referendum approved a constitutional revision expanding the president's powers, which was presented by the junta as a prerequisite for institutional stability and boycotted by part of the opposition. Since its independence from Portugal in 1974, this Lusophone country wedged between Senegal and Guinea has experienced five coups and numerous attempts, recalls AFP. As for the Bissau-Guineans, they are still waiting to know when their votes will be counted.